Touch pad and computer

ABSTRACT

A touch pad is configured to receive input operations using objects including a finger and a stylus. The touch pad includes a touch screen including a touch detection surface that serves as a button and as a position detection region for detecting positions of the objects. The touch pad includes an integrated circuit having an object detection function of detecting the positions of the objects on the touch detection surface and a button function of detecting a press state of the button based on a force applied to the touch detection surface. The touch pad includes a button function stop unit configured to cause, according to an operation state of the stylus or according to a setting related to an input operation of the stylus, the integrated circuit to stop outputting a button press state value indicative of the press state detected by the button function.

BACKGROUND Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a non-discrete type touch pad and acomputer including such a touch pad.

Description of the Related Art

A touch pad or a track pad (collectively referred to as a “touch pad”)provided on a notebook computer or the like generally includes a buttonor a button function for realizing a function equivalent to a rightclick or left click function of a mouse device. The touch pad isclassified into a discrete type or a non-discrete type depending onwhether or not the touch screen system is provided separately from thebutton system.

FIG. 13A depicts a notebook computer 100 a including a discrete typetouch pad 200 a. As illustrated in FIG. 13A, the touch pad 200 a of thistype includes dedicated buttons 202 and 203 for a click operationrealized by a separate system from a touch screen 201.

On the other hand, FIG. 13B depicts a notebook computer 100 b includinga non-discrete type touch pad 200 b. As illustrated in FIG. 13B, thetouch pad 200 b of this type does not include dedicated buttons for aclick operation, and the click operation is realized by pressing a touchscreen 204.

The non-discrete type touch pad 200 b can be further divided into twotypes, which are a “click pad” type and a “pressure pad” type, based onthe specific structure used to press the touch screen 204 to realize aclick. The click pad is a type of touch pad in which the touch screen204 pressed by a user is displaced downward. In many cases, the clickpad includes a push button switch just below the touch screen 204. Thetouch screen 204 displaced downward turns on the push button switch torealize the click operation in the click pad. On the other hand, thepressure pad is a type of touch pad, in which a force sensor detects thepress force applied to the touch screen 204, and the output of the forcesensor is compared with a threshold to realize the click. In thepressure pad, the touch screen 204 may be slightly bent, but the touchscreen 204 is not displaced as much as in the click pad.

The three types of touch pads described above (discrete type,non-discrete click pad type, and non-discrete pressure pad type) and thecontent of a report supplied from these touch pads to a host device aredisclosed in “Windows Precision Touchpad Collection,” [online], May 2,2017, by Eliot Graff and three others, Microsoft Corporation, [searchedon Mar. 5, 2019], Internet <URL:https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/component-guidelines/touchpad-windows-precision-touchpad-collection>.Further, a specific reporting method of the press state of buttonsrealized by the touch pad is disclosed in “Buttons, Report LevelUsages,” [online], May 2, 2017, by Eliot Graff and three others,Microsoft Corporation, [searched on Mar. 5, 2019], Internet <URL:https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-hardware/design/component-guidelines/touchpad-buttons-report-level-usages>.

Examples of the mechanism for realizing the touch pad are disclosed inU.S. Pat. No. 9,207,801 (hereinafter, referred to as Patent Document 1)and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2011/0141052 (hereinafter,referred to as Patent Document 2). The touch pad described in PatentDocument 1 is displaced downward, and the touch pad can be called aclick pad. However, the touch pad described in Patent Document 1includes a force sensor instead of a push button switch. The touch paddescribed in Patent Document 2 is a pressure pad in which the touch padis not displaced. However, to provide a sense of clicking, the touch paddescribed in Patent Document 2 has a function of slightly moving theentire touch pad horizontally in response to the detection of a click.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The touch pad is originally provided to receive an operation input by afinger. It would be convenient for a user if the touch pad can alsoreceive an operation input by a stylus. For example, a region in thetouch pad can be used as a region for receiving a signature inputted bya stylus. Therefore, the inventor of the present specification has beendeveloping touch pads that can additionally receive an operation inputby a stylus. The inventor has discovered that the following problemoccurs in relation to the non-discrete type touch pads.

Specifically, in both the click pad type touch pad and the pressure padtype touch pad, a threshold related to a press force (a pressure appliedto a touch detection surface) as a condition to trigger button actuationis optimized to provide the best experience when the touch screen ispressed by a finger. When the user uses a stylus on the touch pad, theuser tends to apply the same force to the stylus pen tip to performhandwriting as the pen pressure applied when writing on a piece of paperusing a pen. As a result, an unintended click operation may occur whenthe user uses a stylus to perform an input operation.

In addition, the touch screen is displaced when the user uses a stylusto perform the input operation, particularly in the click pad typenon-discrete touch pad. As a result, the user's handwriting operationmay be disturbed when the pressure applied to the stylus pen tipabruptly changes, or the pen pressure values detected in the stylus maybecome discontinuous.

Therefore, an aspect of the present disclosure is directed to providinga touch pad and a computer that can prevent generation of a clickoperation not intended by a user when the user uses a stylus to make aninput in a non-discrete type touch pad.

Another aspect of the present disclosure is directed to providing atouch pad and a computer that can prevent disturbance to handwriting andgeneration of discontinuous pen pressure values caused by physicaldisplacement of a touch screen when a user uses a stylus to make aninput in a click pad.

A first aspect of the present disclosure provides a non-discrete typetouch pad which can receive input operations using objects includingboth a finger and a stylus. The touch pad includes a touch screenincluding a touch detection surface that serves both as a button and asa position detection region for detecting positions of the objects. Thetouch pad includes an integrated circuit having an object detectionfunction of detecting the positions of the objects on the touchdetection surface and a button function of detecting a press state ofthe button based on a force applied to the touch detection surface. Thetouch pad (or the integrated circuit) includes a button function stopunit configured to cause, according to an operation state of the stylusor according to a setting related to an input operation of the stylus,the integrated circuit to stop outputting a button press state valueindicative of the press state detected by the button function.

The touch pad according to the first aspect of the present disclosuremay be a non-discrete type touch pad which can receive input operationsusing objects including a finger and a stylus. The touch pad includes atouch detection surface that serves both as a button and as a positiondetection region for detecting positions of the objects. The touch padincludes an integrated circuit having an object detection function ofdetecting the positions of the objects on the touch detection surfaceand a button function of detecting a press state of the button based ona force applied to the touch detection surface. The touch pad (or theintegrated circuit) includes a button function stop unit configured tocause, according to an operation state of the stylus or according to asetting related to an input operation of the stylus, the integratedcircuit to stop outputting a button press state value indicative of thepress state detected by the button function.

A second aspect of the present disclosure provides a touch pad accordingto the first aspect of the present disclosure, in which the touch screenis displaced according to the force applied to the touch detectionsurface, and the button function stop unit is a displacement suppressionunit configured to suppress the displacement of the touch screen.

According to the first aspect of the present disclosure, outputting ofthe button press state value from the integrated circuit can be stoppedwhen the user uses the stylus to perform the input operation. This canprevent generation of a click operation not intended by the user whenthe user uses the stylus to make an input in the non-discrete type touchpad.

According to the second aspect of the present disclosure, thedisplacement of the click pad can be suppressed when the user uses thestylus to perform the input operation. This can prevent disturbance tohandwriting and generation of discontinuous pen pressure values causedby physical displacement of the touch screen when the user uses thestylus to make an input in the click pad.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts a notebook computer including a non-discrete type touchpad according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computernear the touch pad 2 according to the first embodiment of the presentdisclosure, FIG. 2B depicts an x-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer 1 near the touch pad 2 according to the first embodiment of thepresent disclosure, and FIG. 2C depicts a positional relation, on aplane, between a touch screen and four force sensors included in thetouch pad according to the first embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks of anintegrated circuit according to the first embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 4 depicts a configuration of data supplied from an output unit to acentral processing unit (CPU);

FIG. 5A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computernear the touch pad according to a second embodiment of the presentdisclosure, FIG. 5B depicts an x-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer near the touch pad according to the second embodiment of thepresent disclosure, and FIG. 5C depicts a positional relation, on aplane, among the touch screen, the four force sensors, and a hapticapparatus included in the touch pad according to the second embodimentof the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit according to the second embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 7A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computernear the touch pad according to a third embodiment of the presentdisclosure, FIG. 7B depicts an x-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer near the touch pad according to the third embodiment of thepresent disclosure, and FIGS. 7C and 7D depict positional relations, ona plane, among the touch screen, push button switches, an indicationmember, and a spacer according to the third embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit according to the third embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 9A depicts a positional relation, on a plane, among the touchscreen, the push button switches, the indication member, and an actuatorincluded in the touch pad according to a fourth embodiment of thepresent disclosure, and FIGS. 9B and 9C depict y-direction crosssections of the notebook computer near the actuator;

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit according to the fourth embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 11A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computernear the touch pad according to a fifth embodiment of the presentdisclosure, and FIG. 11B depicts an x-direction cross section of thenotebook computer near the touch pad according to the fifth embodimentof the present disclosure;

FIGS. 12A and 12B depict states in which a stylus in FIGS. 11A and 11Bis removed, respectively; and

FIG. 13A depicts a notebook computer including a discrete type touchpad; and FIG. 13B depicts a notebook computer including a non-discretetype touch pad.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detailwith reference to the attached drawings.

FIG. 1 depicts a notebook computer 1 including a non-discrete type touchpad 2 according to a first embodiment of the present disclosure. Besidesthe touch pad 2, the notebook computer 1 includes various componentstypically included in a commercially available notebook computer, suchas a housing 7, a display 8, and a keyboard 9 illustrated in FIG. 1, anda CPU 6 illustrated in FIG. 2A to be described later. In the followingdescription, a direction corresponding to a lateral direction as viewedfrom the user using the notebook computer 1 will be referred to as anx-direction as illustrated in FIG. 1. A direction corresponding to adepth direction will be referred to as a y-direction, and a directioncorresponding to a height direction will be referred to as az-direction.

FIG. 2A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computer 1near (adjacent to) the touch pad 2, and FIG. 2B depicts an x-directioncross section of the notebook computer 1 near the touch pad 2. FIG. 2Cdepicts a positional relation, on a plane, among a touch screen 3 andfour force sensors 10 a to 10 d included in the touch pad 2. Althoughthe CPU 6 and an integrated circuit 11 illustrated in FIG. 2A arestructures that may not actually appear in the cross section, thestructures are illustrated to help understanding of the configuration ofthe touch pad 2.

As illustrated in FIG. 2A, the notebook computer 1 includes the CPU 6 (ahost computer). The CPU 6 is a central processing unit of the notebookcomputer 1. The CPU 6 can execute the operating system of the notebookcomputer 1, various applications, driver software of various types ofhardware including the touch pad 2, and the like in cooperation with astorage apparatus (not illustrated). The CPU 6 also executes a processof receiving input from various input apparatuses including the touchpad 2 and the keyboard 9 illustrated in FIG. 1, a process of outputtingexecution results of the operating system and various applications tovarious output apparatuses including the display 8 illustrated in FIG.1, a process of communicating with other computers through acommunication unit (not illustrated), and the like.

The touch pad 2 is a pressure pad as described above. As illustrated inFIGS. 2A to 2C, the touch pad 2 includes the touch screen 3, the fourforce sensors 10 a to 10 d, and the integrated circuit 11. In thefollowing description, the force sensors 10 a to 10 d will becollectively referred to as force sensor(s) 10 in some cases when theforce sensors 10 a to 10 d do not have to be particularly distinguishedfrom each other.

The touch screen 3 is a touch screen supportive of a capacitance system.Examples of a specific configuration of the touch screen 3 that can besuitably adopted include a configuration in which a plurality of linearelectrodes (referred to as “X-electrodes”) extending in the x-directionat equal intervals and a plurality of linear electrodes (referred to as“Y-electrodes”) extending in the y-direction at equal intervals arearranged on top of each other, and a configuration in which a pluralityof island-like electrodes are arranged in a matrix. The followingdescription is based on the assumption that the former configuration isadopted.

As illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the touch screen 3 and each of theforce sensors 10 are arranged inside of a recess portion 7 a provided inthe housing 7. The upper surface of the touch screen 3 is exposed to thesurface of the housing 7 and provides a touch detection surface 3 s forreceiving an input of the user using an object, such as a finger F and astylus S, illustrated in FIG. 1. The touch detection surface 3 s servesas a click button and as a position detection region for detecting theposition of the object. Therefore, the touch pad 2 is a “non-discretetype.” The touch screen 3 in the illustrated example is not displaced bya press force applied to the touch detection surface 3 s, and therefore,the touch pad 2 is a “pressure pad.”

Each of the force sensors 10 is fixed between the touch screen 3 and abottom portion (base) of the recess portion 7 a and plays a role ofdetecting the press force applied to the touch detection surface 3 s.The type of force sensor 10 is not particularly limited. For example, apiezoelectric element, a strain gauge, a capacitive element, anelectromagnetic sensor, an optical sensor, a resistance sensor, or thelike can be suitably used as the force sensor 10.

As illustrated in FIG. 2C, the four force sensors 10 are arranged atpositions corresponding to four corners of the touch screen 3 on aplane. The integrated circuit 11 divides the touch detection surface 3 sinto one or more regions (=buttons) and stores the regions. Theintegrated circuit 11 acquires the pressed position based on the outputof each of the force sensors 10 to determine the press state of eachregion. The details will be described later. This realizes what iscalled a right click and a left click.

The integrated circuit 11 is a dedicated integrated circuit provided forexecuting various processes described later related to the touch pad 2.The integrated circuit 11 is connected to the touch screen 3, each ofthe force sensors 10, and the CPU 6. It is possible to have the driversoftware of the touch pad 2 operating on the CPU 6 execute part or allof the processes executed by the integrated circuit 11. In this case,the driver software is also part of the touch pad 2 according to thepresent disclosure.

The integrated circuit 11 executes a process of detecting positions ofvarious objects including the finger F and the stylus S illustrated inFIG. 1 on the touch detection surface 3 s through the touch screen 3.The specific method of position detection is not particularly limited.For example, it may be preferable to adopt a detection method in whichthe detection of the finger F based on a capacitance system and thedetection of the stylus S based on an active capacitive system areperformed in a time division manner. The following description is basedon the assumption that this detection method is adopted.

FIG. 3 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit 11. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the integratedcircuit 11 has functions including an object detection unit 30, a buttonunit 31, an output unit 32, and a button function stop unit 33. A stylusdetection unit 35 and a contact state detection unit 36 are provided inthe object detection unit 30.

The object detection unit 30 is a functional unit that realizes afunction of detecting the positions of the objects on the touchdetection surface 3 s (object detection function). Specifically, theobject detection unit 30 is configured to perform the detection of thefinger F based on the capacitance system and the detection of the stylusS based on the active capacitive system in a time division manner. Thedetections will be described in detail.

In the detection of the finger F, the object detection unit 30 suppliesfinger detection signals including pulses corresponding to the number ofX-electrodes to the plurality of X-electrodes in the touch screen 3, andthe plurality of Y-electrodes in the touch screen 3 receive the fingerdetection signals, respectively. The object detection unit 30 isconfigured to calculate the correlation between the signal received byeach Y-electrode and the finger detection signal supplied to eachX-electrode and derive the position of the finger F on the basis of theresults. The capacitance at the intersection of a Y-electrode and eachX-electrode is reflected in the amplitude of the finger detection signalreceived by that Y-electrode, and the capacitance at each intersectiondecreases when the finger F approaches. Therefore, the object detectionunit 30 can execute the process to derive the position of the finger F.

The object detection unit 30 is configured to operate, for the detectionof the stylus S, in either one of a discovery mode and a communicationmode. The discovery mode is a mode entered when the stylus S is notdetected yet. The object detection unit 30 in the discovery modeperiodically transmits uplink signals from the plurality of X-electrodesor Y-electrodes, and sequentially scans the X-electrodes and theY-electrodes in the touch screen 3 to wait for reception of a downlinksignal transmitted by the stylus S that has received the uplink signals.When the downlink signal is received, the object detection unit 30derives the position of the stylus S on the basis of the receptionstrength in the X-electrodes and the Y-electrodes (global scan). Theobject detection unit 30 derives the position in this way to detect thestylus S and enters into the mode of communication with the stylus S.After entering into the communication mode, the object detection unit 30scans only the linear electrodes positioned near the most recentlyderived position of the stylus S to update the position of the stylus S(local scan).

The downlink signal transmitted from the stylus S includes a burstsignal (for example, an unmodulated signal with a single frequency) usedby the object detection unit 30 to detect the position of the stylus Sas described above, and a data signal modulated by various types of dataheld in the stylus S. The transmission of the data signal including thedata is instructed by the object detection unit 30 through thetransmission of the uplink signal including a command. The dataincludes, for example, a pen pressure value indicating the pen pressureincluding the pressure applied to the pen tip of the stylus S,information indicating the on/off state of a switch arranged on thesurface of the stylus S, and a pen identification (ID) for identifyingthe stylus S. The object detection unit 30 that has received the datasignal decodes the received data signal to acquire the data transmittedfrom the stylus S.

In the communication mode, the object detection unit 30 intermittentlyexecutes transmission of the uplink signal for instructing the stylus Sand reception of the downlink signal for detecting the position of thestylus S and receiving the data transmitted from the stylus S. When thedownlink signal is not received for a predetermined time for a reasonsuch as that the stylus S is away from the touch screen 3, the objectdetection unit 30 cancels the communication mode and returns to thediscovery mode.

The stylus detection unit 35 is a functional unit that determines thatthe user is using the stylus S to perform the input operation. Thestylus detection unit 35 according to the present embodiment isconfigured to determine that the user is using the stylus S to performthe input operation on the basis of the detection result of the downlinksignal. More specifically, the stylus detection unit 35 determines thatthe user is using the stylus S to perform the input operation when theobject detection unit 30 is in the communication mode of communicatingwith the stylus S and determines that the user is not using the stylus Sto perform the input operation when the object detection unit 30 is inthe discovery mode. The stylus detection unit 35 may use other methodsto determine whether or not the user is using the stylus S to performthe input operation. Specific examples of the determination will bedescribed later.

The contact state detection unit 36 is a functional unit that determineswhether or not the stylus S is in contact with (in touch with) the touchdetection surface 3 s. Specifically, the contact state detection unit 36refers to the pen pressure value included in the data signal receivedfrom the stylus S to determine that the stylus S is not in contact withthe touch detection surface 3 s when the pen pressure value is equal toor smaller than a predetermined threshold (for example, 0). The contactstate detection unit 36 determines that the stylus S is in contact withthe touch detection surface 3 s when the pen pressure value is largerthan the predetermined threshold.

In the present specification, the state indicating that the finger F orthe stylus S is either in contact with or not in contact with the touchdetection surface 3 s will be referred to as a “contact state,” and thestate in which the finger F or the stylus S is in contact with the touchdetection surface 3 s will be referred to as a “making contact” state.When the finger F is “making contact,” the object detection unit 30supplies the coordinates indicating the position of the finger F to theoutput unit 32. On the other hand, when the stylus S is “makingcontact,” the object detection unit 30 supplies the coordinatesindicating the position of the stylus S and the received data from thestylus S to the output unit 32. The determination result of the stylusdetection unit 35 in this case is that “the user is using the stylus Sto perform the input operation,” and the determination result of thecontact state detection unit 36 is that “the stylus S is makingcontact.”

In the present specification, the state in which the stylus S is in thearea of communication with the object detection unit 30, but not incontact with the touch detection surface 3 s, will be referred to as a“hovering” state. When the stylus S is “hovering,” the object detectionunit 30 supplies the coordinates indicating the position of the stylus Sand the data received from the stylus S to the output unit 32. Thedetermination result of the stylus detection unit 35 is that “the useris using the stylus S to perform the input operation,” and thedetermination result of the contact state detection unit 36 is that “thestylus S is not making contact.”

The button unit 31 is a functional unit that realizes a function ofdetecting the press state of buttons based on the force applied to thetouch detection surface 3 s (button function). Specifically, the buttonunit 31 virtually divides the touch detection surface 3 s into one ormore regions (=buttons) and stores the regions. The button unit 31acquires the press force of each region on the basis of the output ofeach of the force sensors 10. The button unit 31 determines that theuser has pressed the button of the region in which the press forceexceeds a predetermined threshold.

The button unit 31 periodically executes the determination, and in everydetermination, the button unit 31 generates a button press state valueof each region indicating the press state of the region. For example,the button unit 31 sets the button press state value of a button to “1”when the button unit 31 determines that the button is pressed, and thebutton unit 31 sets the button press state value of a button to “0” whenthe button unit 31 determines that the button is not pressed. The buttonpress state value generated by the button unit 31 is supplied to theoutput unit 32.

The output unit 32 is a functional unit that functions as an interfacebetween the object detection unit 30 and the CPU 6 and between thebutton unit 31 and the CPU 6. The data supplied from the output unit 32to the CPU 6 will be specifically described with reference to FIG. 4.

FIG. 4 depicts a configuration of data supplied from the output unit 32to the CPU 6. FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a case in which the touchdetection surface 3 s is divided into two regions (=button 1 and button2). As illustrated in FIG. 4, the data supplied from the output unit 32to the CPU 6 in this case includes the number of contacts, a buttonpress state value of the button 1, a button press state value of thebutton 2, a contact state of the finger F, coordinates of the finger F,a contact state of the stylus S, coordinates of the stylus S, andreception data received from the stylus S. The output unit 32 acquiresthese data based on various types of data acquired by the objectdetection unit 30, and supplies the data to the CPU 6.

The data illustrated in FIG. 4 will be specifically described. Theoutput unit 32 sets the “contact state of finger F” to “1” when thefinger F is making contact (time t₁ to t₄) and sets the “contact stateof finger F” to “0” when the finger F is not making contact (time t₅ tot₁₄). The output unit 32 sets the “contact state of stylus S” to “1”when the stylus S is making contact (time t₂ to t₈) and sets the“contact state of stylus S” to “0” when the stylus S is not makingcontact (time t₁ and t₉ to t₁₄). “The number of contacts” is a sum valueof the “contact state of finger F” and the “contact state of stylus S,”and “the number of contacts” plays a role of notifying the CPU 6 of thenumber of objects touching the touch detection surface 3 s.

When the coordinates indicating the position of the finger F aresupplied from the object detection unit 30, the output unit 32 transfersthe coordinates as the “coordinates of finger F” to the CPU 6 (time t₁to t₄). On the other hand, when the coordinates indicating the positionof the finger F are not supplied from the object detection unit 30, theoutput unit 32 stops outputting the “coordinates of finger F” (time t₅to t₁₄). This is similarly applied to the “coordinates of stylus S” andthe “received data from stylus S.” Note that P_(n) illustrated in FIG. 4represents coordinates (x,y), and D_(n) represents reception datareceived from the stylus S. In addition, “NR” is an abbreviation of “NotReported,” and this represents that the output is stopped.

When the button press state value of the button 1 or the button 2 issupplied from the button unit 31, the output unit 32 further transfersthe button press state value as a “button press state value” to the CPU6. On the other hand, when the button press state value is not suppliedfrom the button unit 31, the output unit 32 stops outputting the “buttonpress state value.” Even when the button press state value is suppliedfrom the button unit 31, when the button press state value supplied fromthe button unit 31 indicates that the button is not pressed (that is,when the button press state value is “0”), the output unit 32 stopsoutputting the “button press state value” after transferring only thefirst button press state value to the CPU 6 (time t₅ for button 1, timet₁₃ for button 2). This is because there is no need to continuouslynotify the CPU 6 of the fact that the buttons are not pressed.

FIG. 3 will be further described. The CPU 6 that has received the datafrom the output unit 32 first refers to “the number of contacts” toacquire the number of position indicators (fingers F or styluses S)making contacts. The CPU 6 also refers to the “contact state of fingerF” and the “contact state of stylus S” to acquire the contact state ofthe finger F and the stylus S, respectively.

The CPU 6 further executes a movement process of cursor, a generationprocess of digital ink, and the like, on the basis of the suppliedcoordinates when the “coordinates of finger F” or the “coordinates ofstylus S” are supplied. The CPU 6 also executes a process responsive tothe content of the reception data when the “reception data from stylusS” is supplied. For example, the CPU 6 executes a process of controllingthe line width or the transparency of the digital ink according to thepen pressure value when the reception data received from the stylus S isa pen pressure value.

When the button press state value supplied from the output unit 32 is“1,” the CPU 6 executes a predetermined process (such as a process ofselecting a character) as a process triggered by pressing of thecorresponding button. When the button press state value becomes “0” oris stopped, the CPU 6 executes a predetermined process (such ascancelling the selection of the character) as a process triggered byrelease of the pressing of the corresponding button.

The configuration in the integrated circuit 11 will be furtherdescribed. The button function stop unit 33 is a functional unit thatcauses the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button pressstate value (output from the output unit 32 to the CPU 6) according tothe input operation state of the stylus S. Specifically, the buttonfunction stop unit 33 controls the output unit 32 to stop outputting thebutton press state value when the stylus detection unit 35 determinesthat the user is using the stylus S to perform the input operation. Thiscauses the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button pressstate value when the user is using the stylus S to perform the inputoperation.

According to the touch pad 2 of the present embodiment, the integratedcircuit 11 stops outputting the button press state value when the useruses the stylus S to perform the input operation as described above.Therefore, the CPU does not execute the process corresponding to thebutton being pressed, and this can prevent generation of a clickoperation not intended by the user when the user uses the stylus S toperform an input operation on the non-discrete type touch pad 2.

Although the button function stop unit 33 controls the output unit 32 tostop outputting the button press state value to cause the integratedcircuit 11 to stop outputting the button press state value in theembodiment described above, the button function stop unit 33 may useother methods to cause the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting thebutton press state value. For example, the button function stop unit 33may stop the output of each of the force sensors 10 to cause theintegrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button press state value ormay control another part in the integrated circuit 11 (for example,stopping the function of the button unit 31 to prevent the button pressstate value from being supplied to the output unit 32) to cause theintegrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button press state value.

Although the button function stop unit 33 causes the integrated circuit11 to stop outputting the button press state value when the stylusdetection unit 35 determines that the user is using the stylus S toperform the input operation in the embodiment, the button function stopunit 33 may cause the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting thebutton press state value in other cases. For example, the buttonfunction stop unit 33 may cause the integrated circuit 11 to stopoutputting the button press state value when the contact state detectionunit 36 determines that the stylus S is in contact with the touchdetection surface 3 s. In this way, the output of the button press statevalue is not stopped when the stylus S is hovering, and, for example,the user can use the finger F to perform a click operation on the touchpad 2 while the stylus S is hovering.

The button function stop unit 33 may cause the integrated circuit 11 tostop outputting the button press state value according to a settingrelated to the input operation of the stylus S instead of the inputoperation state of the stylus S. Specific examples of the settinginclude a process of causing the integrated circuit 11 to stopoutputting the button press state value when the user turns off ahardware switch (a user-operable unit), which is not illustrated, and aprocess of causing the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting thebutton press state value when the user explicitly creates a setting inthe driver software of the touch pad 2 to indicate that the user isusing the stylus to perform an input operation.

Although the stylus detection unit 35 determines that the user is usingthe stylus S to perform the input operation on the basis of thedetection result of the downlink signal in the embodiment describedabove, the stylus detection unit 35 may determine that the user is usingthe stylus S to perform the input operation on the basis of other typesof information. For example, in a case where both the notebook computer1 and the stylus S are compatible with Bluetooth (registered trademark),the stylus detection unit 35 may determine that the user is using thestylus S to perform the input operation when the notebook computer 1 ispaired with the stylus S through Bluetooth (registered trademark). Thestylus detection unit 35 may also determine that the user is using thestylus S to perform the input operation when the user extracts thestylus S from a “garage” 7 c (see FIG. 11) to be described later (thatis, when the output of a garage switch described later indicates thatthe stylus S is not housed in the notebook computer 1).

Although the active capacitive system is used to detect the stylus S inthe embodiment described above, the same capacitance system as for thefinger F may be used to detect the stylus S. In this case, it ispreferable that the stylus detection unit 35 determine that the user isusing the stylus S to perform the input operation on the basis of thearea of a region in which the object is detected by the object detectionunit 30 (that is, the region in which the amount of change incapacitance is equal to or greater than a predetermined value). Morespecifically, the area of the above-described region in the stylus S issmaller than that of the finger F, and therefore, it is preferable thatthe stylus detection unit 35 determines that the user is using thestylus S to perform the input operation when the area of theabove-described region is equal to or smaller than a predeterminedvalue.

Next, the touch pad 2 according to a second embodiment of the presentdisclosure will be described. The touch pad 2 according to the presentembodiment is different from the touch pad 2 of the first embodiment inthat haptics is used to produce the sense of clicking on the touch pad2, and the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment is similar tothe touch pad 2 of the first embodiment in other respects. Therefore,the same reference signs are provided to refer to the same components asin the first embodiment, and the differences from the first embodimentwill be mainly described.

FIG. 5A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computer 1(see FIG. 1) near the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment,and FIG. 5B depicts an x-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer 1 near the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment. Ascan be understood by comparing FIGS. 5A and 5B with FIGS. 2A and 2B, thetouch pad 2 according to the present embodiment is different from thetouch pad 2 according to the first embodiment in that the touch pad 2according to the present embodiment includes a haptic apparatus 12between the touch screen 3 and the bottom portion (base) of the recessportion 7 a.

The haptic apparatus 12 is an apparatus that provides sensory feedbackto the user. The type of haptic apparatus 12 does not particularlymatter as long as the sensory feedback can be provided to the user, andthe haptic apparatus 12 can include, for example, a vibrating body, amagnetic fluid, an artificial muscle, and an actuator.

FIG. 5C depicts a positional relation, on a plane, among the touchscreen 3, the four force sensors 10 a to 10 d, and the haptic apparatus12 included in the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment. Asillustrated in FIG. 5C, the haptic apparatus 12 is arranged in a regionsurrounded by the force sensors 10 a to 10 d, near the center of thetouch detection surface 3 s.

The button unit 31 according to the present embodiment uses the touchdetection surface 3 s without dividing the touch detection surface 3 s.Therefore, the entire touch detection surface 3 s provides one button.The arrangement of the haptic apparatus 12 illustrated in FIG. 5Ccorresponds to the configuration of a button. The touch detectionsurface 3 s may obviously be divided, and, in that case, it ispreferable to individually arrange the haptic apparatus 12 for each ofthe divided regions.

FIG. 6 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit 11 according to the present embodiment. Thebutton unit 31 according to the present embodiment controls the hapticapparatus 12 to output sensory feedback, according to the force appliedto the touch detection surface 3 s. More specifically, the button unit31 causes the haptic apparatus 12 to output sensory feedback when thebutton unit 31 determines that the press force exceeds a predeterminedthreshold. As a result, the sense of clicking can be provided to theuser pressing the touch detection surface 3 s, although the touch screen3 is not displaced unlike in the click pad type touch pad, to bedescribed later.

The button function stop unit 33 according to the present embodimentcauses the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button pressstate value as in the first embodiment and further causes the hapticapparatus 12 to stop outputting the sensory feedback, according to theinput operation state of the stylus S or a setting related to the inputoperation of the stylus S. The stopping may be realized by directlycontrolling the haptic apparatus 12 or may be realized by controllingthe button unit 31 so as not to control the haptic apparatus 12. Thiscan prevent providing only the sensory feedback to the user whengeneration of a click operation is suppressed by causing the integratedcircuit 11 to stop outputting the button press state value.

As described above, the touch pad 2 according to the present embodimentnot only causes the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the buttonpress state value, but also causes the haptic apparatus 12 to stopoutputting the sensory feedback when the user uses the stylus S toperform the input operation. This can prevent confusion on the part ofthe user receiving only the sensory feedback (of a click operation) whengeneration of a click operation is suppressed.

Next, the touch pad 2 according to a third embodiment of the presentdisclosure will be described. The touch pad 2 according to the presentembodiment is different from the touch pad 2 of the first embodiment inthat the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment is a click padinstead of the pressure pad, and the touch pad 2 according to thepresent embodiment is similar to the touch pad 2 of the first embodimentin other respects. Therefore, the same reference signs are provided torefer to the same components as in the first embodiment, and thedifferences from the first embodiment will be mainly described.

FIG. 7A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computer 1(see FIG. 1) near the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment,and FIG. 7B depicts an x-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer 1 near the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment.FIGS. 7C and 7D depict positional relations, on a plane, among the touchscreen 3, push button switches 15 a and 15 b, an indication member 16,and a spacer 17 included in the touch pad 2 according to the presentembodiment. As can be understood by comparing FIGS. 7A to 7D with FIGS.2A to 2C, the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment isdifferent from the touch pad 2 according to the first embodiment in thatthe touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment includes the pushbutton switches 15 a and 15 b in place of the force sensors 10 a and 10b, does not include the force sensors 10 c and 10 d, and includes theindication member 16 and the spacer 17.

The push button switches 15 a and 15 b are switches that are turned onwhen a force greater than a certain level is applied from the upper sideand that are turned off when the force is removed. The height (length inz-direction) of the push button switches 15 a and 15 b change within acertain range according to the force from the upper side. When a forceis not applied from the upper side, the push button switches 15 a and 15b play a role of supporting the touch screen 3. On the other hand, whena force greater than the certain level is applied from the upper side,the push button switches 15 a and 15 b function as stoppers of the touchscreen 3. Further, the push button switches 15 a and 15 b can include,for example, rubber contacts to provide the sense of clicking to theuser when the push button switches 15 a and 15 b are turned on.

As can be understood from FIGS. 7B to 7D, the indication member 16 is amember in a triangular prism shape laid down and arranged in a spacebetween the touch screen 3 and the bottom surface of the recess portion7 a, at a position along one side positioned on the deep side in they-direction as viewed from the user of the rectangular touch detectionsurface 3 s. One of the three side surfaces of the indication member 16is entirely fixed to the bottom surface of the recess portion 7 a. Anedge of the indication member 16 opposite from the side surface attachedto the bottom surface of the recess portion 7 a is entirely in contactwith the lower surface of the touch screen 3. Due to such structure ofthe indication member 16, the touch screen 3 can be displaced along anarrow A illustrated in FIG. 7B when the user applies a press force tothe touch detection surface 3 s. As a result of the displacement, thetouch screen 3 presses the push button switches 15 a and 15 b, and, whenthe push button switches 15 a and 15 b are turned on, the CPU 6 executesa corresponding process of a click operation (details will be describedlater).

The touch screen 3 according to the present embodiment is designed to beslightly bent when a press force is applied from the upper side. Onlythe push button switch 15 a is turned on when the user pushes the rightside of the touch detection surface 3 s, and only the push button switch15 b is turned on when the user pushes the left side of the touchdetection surface 3 s. This realizes what is called a right click and aleft click.

The spacer 17 is, for example, a plate-shaped member, and the spacer 17can be attached to and removed from between the touch screen 3 and thehousing 7 through an opening (not illustrated) provided in the housing7. Because the user can manually attach and remove the spacer 17, thespacer 17 forms part of a user-operable unit of the notebook computer 1.

The spacer 17 functions as a displacement suppression unit configured tosuppress displacement of the touch screen 3 when the spacer 17 isinstalled between the touch screen 3 and the housing 7. Morespecifically, the spacer 17 prevents displacement of the touch screen 3even if a press force is applied from the upper side of the touch screen3, and therefore, the touch screen 3 cannot be displaced. As a result,the push button switches 15 a and 15 b are not turned on. On the otherhand, nothing prevents displacement when the spacer 17 is not installedbetween the touch screen 3 and the housing 7, and therefore, the touchscreen 3 can be displaced according to the press force applied to thetouch detection surface 3 s. Thus, the push button switch 15 a and 15 bcan be turned on.

Although the spacer 17 is installed between the push button switches 15a and 15 b in the example illustrated in FIG. 7C, the spacer 17 may beinstalled in other positions as long as the spacer 17 functions as adisplacement suppression unit configured to suppress displacement of thetouch screen 3.

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit 11 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 8 isdifferent from FIG. 3 in that the button function stop unit 33 is notprovided in the integrated circuit 11, and the spacer 17 is providedinstead.

The button unit 31 according to the present embodiment is configured togenerate a button press state value of the button 1 on the basis of theon/off state of the push button switch 15 a, and to generate a buttonpress state value of the button 2 on the basis of the on/off state ofthe push button switch 15 b. Specifically, the button unit 31 sets thebutton press state value of the button 1 to “1 (value indicating thatthe button is pressed)” when the push button switch 15 a is on, and setsthe button press state value of the button 1 to “0 (value indicatingthat the button is not pressed)” when the push button switch 15 a isoff. The button unit 31 sets the button press state value of the button2 to “1” when the push button switch 15 b is on and sets the buttonpress state value of the button 2 to “0” when the push button switch 15b is off.

When the user installs the spacer 17 between the touch screen 3 and thehousing 7, the push button switches 15 a and 15 b are not turned on evenif the user presses the touch detection surface 3 s as described above.As a result, the button press state values generated by the button unit31 are always “0,” and the output of the output unit 32 is stopped (“NR”illustrated in FIG. 4). Therefore, in the present embodiment, the spacer17 functions as a button function stop unit configured to cause theintegrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button press state valueaccording to a setting related to the input operation of the stylus S(that is, the setting is insertion of the spacer 17 by the user). Thiscan cause the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button pressstate value when the user uses the stylus S to perform the inputoperation as in the first embodiment.

According to the touch pad 2 of the present embodiment, the spacer 17functions as a button function stop unit as described above. This canprevent generation of a click operation not intended by the user whenthe user uses the stylus S to perform the input operation as in thefirst embodiment.

According to the touch pad 2 of the present embodiment, the touch screen3 is not displaced when the spacer 17 is inserted. This can prevent anabrupt change in the pressure applied to the pen tip of the stylus Scaused by sudden displacement of the touch screen 3 when the user usesthe stylus S to perform an input operation. This prevents disturbance tothe user's handwriting operation and generation of discontinuous penpressure values.

Next, the touch pad 2 according to a fourth embodiment of the presentdisclosure will be described. The touch pad 2 according to the presentembodiment is different from the touch pad 2 of the third embodiment inthat the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment includes anactuator 18 in place of the spacer 17 and includes the button functionstop unit 33 in the integrated circuit 11 as in the first embodiment.The touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment is similar to thetouch pad 2 of the third embodiment in other respects. Therefore, thesame reference signs are provided to refer to the same components as inthe third embodiment, and the differences from the third embodiment willbe mainly described.

FIG. 9A depicts a positional relation, on a plane, among the touchscreen 3, the push button switches 15 a and 15 b, the indication member16, and the actuator 18 included in the touch pad 2 according to thepresent embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 9A, the touch pad 2 accordingto the present embodiment includes the actuator 18 at a positioncorresponding to the center of the touch screen 3 in a plan view. Theposition of the installation of the actuator 18 may be between the pushbutton switches 15 a and 15 b similarly to the spacer 17 of the thirdembodiment.

FIGS. 9B and 9C depict a y-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer 1 (see FIG. 1) near the actuator 18. As illustrated in FIGS. 9Band 9C, the actuator 18 includes an electromagnet 18 a fixed to thehousing 7 (more specifically, to the bottom surface of the recessportion 7 a illustrated in FIG. 7A and the like) and a permanent magnet18 b fixed to the bottom surface of the touch screen 3. A predeterminedgap G is provided between the upper surface of the electromagnet 18 aand the lower surface of the permanent magnet 18 b. The gap G is set toa value larger than the amount of displacement of the push buttonswitches 15 a and 15 b pressed by the touch screen 3. The electromagnet18 a is connected to the integrated circuit 11. Note that theelectromagnet 18 a may be fixed to the lower surface of the touch screen3, and the permanent magnet 18 b may be fixed to the bottom surface ofthe recess portion 7 a.

The integrated circuit 11 can control the current applied to theelectromagnet 18 a to control whether or not to generate a magneticforce from the electromagnet 18 a. Note that the direction of thecurrent generated by the integrated circuit 11 to flow in theelectromagnet 18 a is the direction of repulsion of the electromagnet 18a and the permanent magnet 18 b. For example, the lower surface of thepermanent magnet 18 b is the south pole in the example illustrated inFIG. 9C, and, in this case, the integrated circuit 11 controls thedirection of the current generated to flow in the electromagnet 18 asuch that the upper surface of the electromagnet 18 a becomes the southpole.

The actuator 18 functions as a displacement suppression unit configuredto suppress displacement of the touch screen 3 when the current issupplied from the integrated circuit 11. More specifically, a repulsiveforce acts between the electromagnet 18 a and the permanent magnet 18 bwhen a magnetic force is generated by the electromagnet 18 a as a resultof the current supplied from the integrated circuit 11. Therefore, thetouch screen 3 cannot be displaced even if a press force is applied tothe touch detection surface 3 s. As a result, the push button switches15 a and 15 b are not turned on. On the other hand, a repulsive force isnot generated between the electromagnet 18 a and the permanent magnet 18b when the current is not supplied from the integrated circuit 11 to theactuator 18. Therefore, the touch screen 3 can be displaced according tothe press force applied to the touch detection surface 3 s, and the pushbutton switches 15 a and 15 b can be turned on.

FIG. 10 is a schematic block diagram illustrating functional blocks ofthe integrated circuit 11 according to the present embodiment. As can beunderstood by comparing FIG. 10 with FIG. 8, the touch pad 2 accordingto the present embodiment is different from the touch pad 2 according tothe third embodiment in that the touch pad 2 according to the presentembodiment includes the actuator 18 in place of the spacer 17 andincludes the button function stop unit 33 in the integrated circuit 11.The functions of the button function stop unit 33 are similar to thefunctions in the first embodiment except that the actuator 18 iscontrolled instead of the output unit 32. The functions of the buttonunit 31 according to the present embodiment are similar to the functionsin the third embodiment.

The button function stop unit 33 according to the present embodiment isconfigured to control the current caused to flow in the electromagnet 18a in the actuator 18 according to the input operation state of thestylus S or a setting related to the input operation of the stylus S.Specifically, as described above, the button function stop unit 33controls the current to be flow in the electromagnet 18 a to preventdisplacement of the touch screen 3 in cases such as when the stylusdetection unit 35 determines that the user is using the stylus S toperform the input operation, or when the contact state detection unit 36determines that the stylus S is in contact with the touch detectionsurface 3 s, or when the user turns off a hardware switch (auser-operable unit), which is not illustrated, or when the userexplicitly creates a setting in the driver software of the touch pad 2to indicate that the user is using the stylus to perform an inputoperation, or the like. This causes the integrated circuit 11 to stopoutputting the button press state value when the user uses the stylus Sto perform the input operation. Although a plurality of conditions areillustrated here as conditions for the button function stop unit 33 tocause a current to flow in the electromagnet 18 a, it is actually onlynecessary to adopt just one or more conditions.

As described above, the button function stop unit 33 can control thecurrent caused to flow in the electromagnet 18 a to suppressdisplacement of the touch screen 3 according to the touch pad 2 of thepresent embodiment. This can prevent generation of a click operation notintended by the user when the user uses the stylus S to perform an inputoperation as in the first and third embodiments.

In addition, according to the touch pad 2 of the present embodiment, thetouch screen 3 is not displaced when the current flows in theelectromagnet 18 a. This can prevent an abrupt change in the pressureapplied to the pen tip of the stylus S caused by sudden displacement ofthe touch screen 3 when the user uses the stylus S to perform an inputoperation. This prevents disturbance to the user's handwriting operationand generation of discontinuous pen pressure values as in the thirdembodiment.

Next, the touch pad 2 according to a fifth embodiment of the presentdisclosure will be described. The specific configuration of thedisplacement suppression unit in the touch pad 2 according to thepresent embodiment is different from that of the third embodiment, andthe touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment is similar to thetouch pad 2 of the third embodiment in other respects. Therefore, thesame reference signs are provided to refer to the same components as inthe third embodiment, and the differences from the third embodiment willbe mainly described.

FIG. 11A depicts a y-direction cross section of the notebook computer 1(see FIG. 1) near the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment,and FIG. 11B depicts an x-direction cross section of the notebookcomputer 1 near the touch pad 2 according to the present embodiment. Asillustrated in FIGS. 11A and 11B, the housing 7 according to the presentembodiment includes a garage 7 c below the push button switches 15 a and15 b. The garage 7 c is an elongated hole that can house the stylus S,and the garage 7 c communicates with the recess portion 7 a through anopening 7 b provided on the bottom surface of the recess portion 7 a.

The push button switches 15 a and 15 b according to the presentembodiment are fixed to a cuboid base 19 arranged in the opening 7 b,instead of the bottom surface of the recess portion 7 a. The base 19 isplaced over the stylus S when the stylus S is housed in the garage 7 c,and the upper surface of the base 19 is flush with the bottom surface ofthe recess portion 7 a. In this aspect the touch pad 2 functions as aconventional click pad.

The garage 7 c, the opening 7 b, the base 19, and the stylus S provide agarage switch for switching (controlling) between whether or not thetouch screen 3 can be displaced, based on whether or not the stylus S ishoused in the notebook computer 1. The user manually attaches andremoves the stylus S to and from the garage 7 c, and therefore, thegarage switch forms part of a user-operable unit of the notebookcomputer 1.

FIGS. 12A and 12B depict states in which the stylus S in FIGS. 11A and11B is removed, respectively. The base 19 falls into the garage 7 c whenthe stylus S is removed from the garage 7 c. Accordingly, the pushbutton switches 15 a and 15 b and the touch screen 3 are displaceddownward, but corners of the touch screen 3 are caught on the bottomsurface of the recess portion 7 a. As a result, the base 19 and the pushbutton switches 15 a and 15 b float in the air. In this state, the touchscreen 3 cannot be displaced even if the user uses the finger F or thestylus S to press the touch detection surface 3 s. Therefore, the garage7 c, the opening 7 b, the base 19, and the stylus S provide a garageswitch for switching (controlling) between whether or not the touchscreen 3 can be displaced, based on whether or not the stylus S ishoused in the notebook computer 1.

In the states illustrated in FIGS. 12A and 12B, the push button switches15 a and 15 b are not turned on even if the user uses the finger F orthe stylus S to press the touch detection surface 3 s. The button pressstate value generated by the button unit 31 is always “0,” and theoutput of the output unit 32 is stopped. Therefore, the garage switchincluding the garage 7 c, the opening 7 b, the base 19, and the stylus Sfunctions as a button function stop unit configured to cause theintegrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button press state valueaccording to a setting related to the input operation of the stylus S(that is, the setting is removal of the stylus S from the garage 7 c).

As described above, the garage switch including the garage 7 c, theopening 7 b, the base 19, and the stylus S functions as a buttonfunction stop unit according to the touch pad 2 of the presentembodiment. This can prevent generation of a click operation notintended by the user when the user uses the stylus S to perform theinput operation as in the third embodiment. This can also preventdisturbance to the user's handwriting operation and generation ofdiscontinuous pen pressure values caused by sudden displacement of thetouch screen 3.

Although the preferred embodiments of the present disclosure have beendescribed, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments, andthe present disclosure can be carried out in various modes based on thepresent disclosure.

For example, although the present disclosure is applied to thenon-discrete type touch pad provided on the notebook computer in theexamples described in the embodiments, the present disclosure can bewidely applied in non-discrete type touch pads.

Although in the embodiments described above the button function stopunit 33 immediately causes the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputtingthe button press state value when there is a change in the inputoperation state of the stylus S or there is an alteration in a settingrelated to the input operation of the stylus S, the button function stopunit 33 may cause the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting thebutton press state value after a predetermined time period from thechange or the alteration. For example, when the contact state detectionunit 36 determines that the stylus S is shifted to the hovering state,the button function stop unit 33 may wait for a predetermined timeperiod from the determination and then cause the integrated circuit 11to stop outputting the button press state value instead of immediatelycausing the integrated circuit 11 to stop outputting the button pressstate value. This can prevent frequent switching between whether theclick operation should be valid or invalid.

Although the touch screen 3 is a capacitance touch screen in theembodiments, the present disclosure can also be suitably applied incases using a pressure-sensitive touch screen.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A touch pad configured to receive inputoperations using objects including a finger and a stylus, the touch padcomprising: a touch screen including a touch detection surface thatserves as a button and as a position detection region for detectingpositions of the objects; an integrated circuit having an objectdetection function of detecting the positions of the objects on thetouch detection surface and a button function of detecting a press stateof the button based on a force applied to the touch detection surface; abutton function stop system configured to cause, according to anoperation state of the stylus or according to a setting related to aninput operation of the stylus, the integrated circuit to stop outputtinga button press state value indicative of the press state detected by thebutton function; and a stylus detection system configured to determinethat the stylus is used to perform the input operation, wherein thebutton function stop system causes the integrated circuit to stopoutputting the button press state value when the stylus detection systemdetermines that the stylus is used to perform the input operation. 2.The touch pad according to claim 1, wherein the touch screen isdisplaced according to the force applied to the touch detection surface,and the button function stop system is a displacement suppression systemconfigured to suppress the displacement of the touch screen.
 3. Thetouch pad according to claim 2, wherein the displacement suppressionsystem is a spacer or an actuator provided between the touch screen anda base of the touch screen.
 4. The touch pad according to claim 2,wherein the displacement suppression system is configured to suppressthe displacement of the touch screen according to an operation state ofa user-operable system provided in a computer including the touch pad.5. The touch pad according to claim 4, wherein the user-operable systemis a garage switch configured to switch between whether or not the touchscreen is able to be displaced according to whether or not the stylus ishoused in the computer.
 6. The touch pad according to claim 1, whereinthe touch screen includes a force sensor placed over the touch detectionsurface, and the button function stop system stops output of the forcesensor to stop the output of the button press state value.
 7. The touchpad according to claim 1, wherein the integrated circuit is configuredto output coordinates of the positions detected by the object detectionfunction and the button press state value to a host computer, and thebutton function stop system controls the integrated circuit not tooutput the button press state value to the host computer to stop theoutput of the button press state value.
 8. The touch pad according toclaim 7, wherein the button function stop system stops the buttonfunction to control the integrated circuit not to output the buttonpress state value to the host computer.
 9. The touch pad according toclaim 1, wherein the touch screen includes a haptic apparatus thatprovides sensory feedback to a user, the button function has a functionof causing the haptic apparatus to output the sensory feedback accordingto the force applied to the touch detection surface, and the buttonfunction stop system causes the integrated circuit to stop outputtingthe button press state value and causes the haptic apparatus to stopoutputting the sensory feedback according to the operation state of thestylus or according to the setting related to the input operation of thestylus.
 10. The touch pad according to claim 1, wherein the stylusdetection system is configured to determine that the stylus is used toperform the input operation on a basis of a detection result of a signalfrom the stylus.
 11. The touch pad according to claim 1, furthercomprising: a garage switch that issues different outputs according towhether or not the stylus is housed in a computer, wherein the stylusdetection system is configured to determine that the stylus is used toperform the input operation when the output of the garage switchindicates that the stylus is not housed in the computer.
 12. The touchpad according to claim 1, wherein the object detection function isconfigured to use a capacitance system to detect the positions of theobjects on the touch detection surface, and the stylus detection systemis configured to determine that the stylus is used to perform the inputoperation on a basis of an area of a region in which the objects aredetected by the object detection function.
 13. The touch pad accordingto claim 1, further comprising: a contact state detection systemconfigured to determine whether or not the stylus is in contact with thetouch detection surface, wherein the button function stop system causesthe integrated circuit to stop outputting the button press state valuewhen the contact state detection system determines that the stylus is incontact with the touch detection surface.
 14. The touch pad according toclaim 13, wherein the contact state detection system is configured todetermine that the stylus is in contact with the touch detection surfacewhen a pen pressure value included in a signal from the stylus is largerthan a defined value.
 15. A computer, comprising: a touch pad configuredto receive input operations using objects including a finger and astylus, the touch pad including: a touch screen including a touchdetection surface that serves as a button and as a position detectionregion for detecting positions of the objects, an integrated circuithaving an object detection function of detecting the positions of theobjects on the touch detection surface and a button function ofdetecting a press state of the button based on a force applied to thetouch detection surface, and a button function stop system configured tocause, according to an operation state of the stylus, the integratedcircuit to stop outputting a button press state value indicative of thepress state detected by the button function.
 16. A non-discrete typetouch pad configured to receive input operations using objects includinga finger and a stylus, the touch pad comprising: a touch detectionsurface that serves as a button and as a position detection region fordetecting positions of the objects; an integrated circuit having anobject detection function of detecting the positions of the objects onthe touch detection surface and a button function of detecting a pressstate of the button based on a force applied to the touch detectionsurface; and a button function stop system configured to cause,according to an operation state of the stylus, the integrated circuit tostop outputting a button press state value indicative of the press statedetected by the button function.
 17. The non-discrete type touch padaccording to claim 16, comprising: a force sensor placed over the touchdetection surface, wherein the button function stop system stops outputof the force sensor to stop the output of the button press state value.18. The non-discrete type touch pad according to claim 16, wherein theintegrated circuit is configured to output coordinates of the positionsdetected by the object detection function and the button press statevalue to a host computer, and the button function stop system controlsthe integrated circuit not to output the button press state value to thehost computer to stop the output of the button press state value. 19.The non-discrete type touch pad according to claim 18, wherein thebutton function stop system stops the button function to control theintegrated circuit not to output the button press state value to thehost computer.